Wednesday July 16,2008  I had a left hip resurfacing by Dr. Ure, and am doing very well so far.  We flew into Reno and drove to Mt. Shasta.  4 hour easy drive, Susanville is the place to stop and stretch, get food, about half way to Mt. Shasta.
The drive back after surgery was NOT a problem for me, the road is good and not very winding, and it is a beautiful drive!  I was taking only Tylenol by then.

Dr. Ure is a quiet, but extremely kind man, easy to talk to!

He thought I might get a Conserve+ because my femur was too small for one size BHR Birmingham Hip Resurfacing, too big for the next.  He would not know for sure until he opened me up…I would rather get the right size than one that isn’t as good a fit, so I didn’t care, told him I trusted him to make the call.

The entire nursing staff and PT at Mercy Med were outstanding, you get VERY personal attention, unlike big hospitals, and they are very caring and competant.
My stay was only marred by nausea from the pain meds, so I was on Tylenol by the 4th day rather than the stronger stuff.  They care a lot about your pain there and really want to keep you feeling good after surgery.

I wanted my husband to have something to do besides hanging around the hospital, so we stayed at Cave Creek Resort in Dunsmuir about 10 minutes south of Mt. Shasta.  It is an old resort right on the Sacramento river, he could walk right down to fish, plus there is a fly shop in town that rents equipment and sells flies, called Ted Rays.

Our motel room at the resort was comfy, older but large with a cathedral ceiling, clean and well kept.  There is a beautiful park right on the river beside the resort, too.  Rog caught 2 trout while we were there, we gave them to Dr. Ure!

The first 2 weeks out of the hospital I spent at my mother’s house in the city, and was mostly sleeping and reading and eating in small quantities, my appetite didn’t come back until about day 9, at which point I was doing very well, walking around on crutches exclusively after day 8 (walker until then).

The second week I was feeling so much better but didn’t NEED the sleep so much, so found myself more uncomfortable laying in the recliner or on my back in bed.  Ted hose on until day 18.  I tried getting rid of them earlier, but my foot started to swell, so they went back on…well, one went back on, lol…

Day 17 I drove an automatic for a 5 hour trip home, day 18 I walked on our dirt road for 1000 feet, helped feed the animals in the am, and fed by myself in the evening.

So here it is day 19, and I seem to be doing fine.  The few pains I get are slight and fleeting.  There is still some soreness around the incision area, but not much.

Dr. Ure and Mercy Med are as good as any big city hospital, probably better because of the personal care you get!
I would go back there in a heartbeat for another hip resurfacing if my other hip ever goes bad…

Maddy
LC+  Dr. Ure, 7/16/08